Thicker Than Water
by PenguinTimes
Summary: A mysterious girl comes to South Park, heavily pregnant with Kyle's baby. Will he be able to rise to the challenge of fatherhood after being kicked out of his home and being left alone with the child?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello there! This is my first ever story (on this account anyway) and I hope you all like it. Just to warn you, it might be slow-moving at first but I'm determined to see it through right to the end!**

* * *

Kyle ran a hand through his unruly red curls, stretching and yawning as he clicked 'Shut Down' on the desktop and waited for the computer to switch itself off.

He'd worked on the paper due tomorrow for two weeks straight, and at 2am he was finally satisfied with his fourteen thousand word essay- written with the help of strong coffee and a good number of energy drinks.  
Practically falling into bed, he checked his phone for a final time before he went to sleep, opening the single message that he'd received a few hours beforehand.

'_Hi, is this Kyle?' _It read. He furrowed his brow a little; no one ever texted him! '_Yes, who is this?' _He replied, although at that time his exhaustion took precedence over his ability to care, and he fell asleep with his cell phone still on his chest.

* * *

_Bzzz. Bzzz. Bzzz. _The sound of the alarm on his cell vibrating woke the redheaded teenager from his slumber, and he wearily fumbled around in the dark to switch off the irritating device. He'd forgotten the text message from the night before, only to have the memory restored as he discovered he'd received another one- from the same number it seemed.

_'It's Sasha, from Bebe's house party. Do you remember me?' _Kyle combed his hair with his fingers, trying to gather the somewhat hazy memories of the party that had taken place a few months back.

'Sasha…' he murmured to himself, as he pulled on his jeans and a t-shirt. Then all of a sudden, it clicked, and a face flew to the name. Blue-green eyes, and shiny brunette hair that the girl would often twirl around her index finger when she and Kyle were talking.  
They'd hit it off as far as he could tell, but he was unable to remember far into the night due to the amount of alcohol they'd both consumed; and the next day he couldn't find anyone who could give the redhead her number.

'_Why is she texting me now?' _He wondered as he made his way downstairs for breakfast and to pack up his books for the day.

"Morning bubbie!" His mother chirped cheerfully as she set down a plate of toast in front of her eldest son. He smiled back, unsuccessfully trying to conceal a yawn.

"Kyle, did you stay up too late again?" Sheila fixed him with a disapproving look.

"It was for school ma, I had to make sure that my essay is perfect!" He insisted hastily as her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Okay, just don't let me catch you using that computer for anything else. We got it for your schoolwork and your schoolwork alone." Kyle shook his head exasperatedly; when were his parents going to start trusting him? He'd have thought that by now they'd know that he prioritised schoolwork above all else, even over getting a good night's sleep.  
Funnily enough, the only time he'd given Sheila and Gerald a reason to distrust him was Bebe's party- and they didn't even know about that!

Shrugging to himself and shouldering his book-bag, he pushed all thoughts of Sasha out of his mind, and instead focused on his classes for the day. Double Maths, Psychology, English, French. Plus classical guitar group during lunch, and after school was over he'd head down to the local pool for a few laps before he got started on his homework for the day.  
Despite his being a perfectionist overachiever with very little social life, Kyle was perfectly content with the way things were working out: he was a straight A student with a small but close group of friends- well, apart from Cartman that is. His childhood friendly enemy was just as goading as ever, but now they were older Kyle had grown better at ignoring the taunts.  
Stan had been captained head of the school football team, but he still always made time for his 'Super Best Friend'; especially when the person in question gave him a helping hand with his homework!  
As for Kenny, he hadn't changed a huge amount since Elementary school- although he wore his hood up less and less as the years went on, and his family were doing a little better since his father quit drinking and got a job.  
All in all, Kyle probably wouldn't have minded if his life had stayed as it was now forever.

* * *

He didn't think about the messages he'd received again until he was taking a shower.

"Why is it that my deepest thoughts seem to appear when I'm in here?" He mused to himself. "If I thought hard enough, I could probably come up with a solution to third world poverty in here".  
Once he was finished, the teenager wrapped himself in a towel and padded to his bedroom, flopping down onto his duvet and retrieving his cell from under a heap of clothes.  
He figured it'd be rude not to answer Sasha's earlier message, and so replied with a simple _'Sure, how are you?'_ before setting the cell down on his nightstand, only seconds before the screen lit up again. _'I'm good. Hey, can I come over sometime?' _Kyle furrowed his brow and ran a hand through his hair, straightened somewhat by the hot water from his shower. Why the sudden interest? Bebe's party must have been at least seven, maybe eight months ago.  
_'Maybe the alcohol addled her brain and she thinks that I'm actually some good-looking guy with jet black hair, toned abs and a cool car' _he thought to himself, smirking a little. If that was the case, then Sasha was in for a bit of a shock.  
In reality, his blazing red hair starkly stood out against his creamy white skin, and his wiry but strong swimmer's muscles were far from toned. As for a cool car, Kyle's bicycle hardly added to his levels of attractiveness.  
'_Sure, I guess that's okay.' _He replied. '_What day were you thinking?' _Dropping the cell down on his bed, he dried himself with the towel and pulled on a clean white shirt, his jacket and some jeans. He, Stan and Kenny had planned to hang out that night -no doubt Cartman would invite himself along too- and if he didn't get a move on he was going to be late.  
Quickly towelling his hair dry, Kyle pulled on his lucky green hat and shoved his cell into his pocket, taking the stairs two at a time and calling to his mother to tell him he was going out. Sheila immediately appeared at the top of the stairs.

"Going where? This is the first time I've heard anything about this young man!" The teenager sighed, and looked up at his strict parent.

"Mom, I _told _you. Me and the guys are going-"

"What? Going where?" Sheila pressed, coming down the stairs and standing before her son with hands on hips. If it hadn't been for the fact that she was preventing an evening out with his friends, Kyle would have laughed at the slightly comical difference in size between himself and his mother, with her standing a good head and shoulders shorter. Sometimes, he thought that if it weren't for her hair being scooped up in a beehive and her weight, she wouldn't be visible at all- although her voice and strong opinions entirely made up for that.

"Look, we're just gonna go to Shakey's; I'll be back by eight mom, promise." Turning his back on her, the redhead opened the door.

"If you dare leave then don't even _think _about coming back!" Sheila hastily called after him. Faltering, Kyle sighed, and closed the door again. It wasn't the first time that he'd been threatened with being kicked out, and he was fed up of having it dangled in front of his face over and over.

"Oh come on! Ma, you know I've never given you trouble before! Can I please just go see my friends?" He sucked in his breath hopefully, but his strict mother just shook her head angrily.

"No! Go to your room!" Groaning, her son walked past her and made his way up the stairs, slamming his bedroom door behind him and throwing himself down onto his bed. He pulled his ushanka from his head and threw it across the room, running a hand through his curls and sighing, picking up his cell to text Stan.

'_Sorry dude, mom doesn't want me going out tonight. I'll see you guys tomorrow.' _Kyle tried to keep his bitterness from showing in the message, knowing that Stan knew him better than anyone else -even when it came to texting- but it was difficult to not let his mood come through.

Trying to forget about not being allowed to go out, Kyle pulled out his Psychology textbook and concentrated on reading about psychopathology instead.

* * *

The next day was Friday, and Kyle very much hoped that none of the guys –especially Cartman- would remind him about his mother's ability to be a complete and utter bitch. He was starting to wish he'd made up a different excuse, knowing that his obese friend was bound to tell him at some point that he was 'whipped'.

Apart from Cartman being a complete moron as usual, the next day went by fairly quickly; and soon enough the four boys had the whole weekend ahead of them. As usual, Kyle planned to spend the two days hanging with his friends, swimming, playing basketball and studying for his midterms. Perhaps not the most enthralling of lifestyles, but one that worked for him nonetheless.

Waking at 7:30am on Saturday morning, the redhead grabbed his swimming trunks and towel and headed downstairs, not wanting to miss the first session that would start in an hour.  
No one else was up, and Kyle enjoyed the solitude as he took his insulin and swallowed down some fresh coffee- black, two with sweeteners of course.  
This had always been one of his favourite parts of the day. His mom wasn't up to boss him around, and Ike wasn't there to bug him. At nine, Ike had developed a slightly irritating habit of wanting to follow his sixteen-year-old brother and his friends everywhere. Usually, Kyle was happy to indulge his brother due to their close relationship, but the swimming pool was one of the few places where he wasn't happy to tolerate Ike's company.

Kyle had always enjoyed the feeling of gliding effortlessly through the water, releasing stress and refreshing his often tired bones. He'd been told many times that he should swim competitively for his school, but always insisted that he was happy enough just making a hobby out of it.  
Somehow, he always came out of the water feeling ten times better than he did when he went in, and he didn't want to risk losing that if it meant winning some stupid swimming meet.

It was 10am by the time that Kyle got home, hair still slightly damp from the showers down at the pool, and a note taped to the fridge by his mother told him that she and Ike had gone shopping and to the movies while his father was going to be working all day. Allowing a small smile to escape his lips, the teenager tested his blood sugar levels before having breakfast- the contents of which would depend on the results of the test.  
Checking his cell, he found a reply from the mysterious Sasha.

Truth be told, the girl had been at the back of his mind for the last couple of days, especially as she had only just gotten round to replying to his last message.

'_Actually, I'm in the area now. Mind if I drop by?' _Kyle furrowed his brow. How come she had somehow completely vanished from everyone's radar for months and all of a sudden just happened to be in the area?  
His curiosity over the girl had lead him to call up pretty much every girl he knew to find out exactly who she is, but no one seemed to know much about her- only that she was a 'friend of a friend' and had dropped out of school halfway through the year.

'_Sure, if you want.' _He gave his address and went to dry his hair before Sasha arrived. It wasn't that he wanted to impress her as such… They'd both had chemistry at the party, no doubt about that, but Kyle really wasn't looking for a girlfriend or anything at that point in time. Stan would often shake his head exasperatedly at his best friend's apparent inability to multitask when it came to both his education and girls, and Kenny and both Cartman would often joke about Kyle being gay- which would apparently 'explain everything'.  
Kyle wasn't sure what that meant, and sure wasn't about to ask.

His hair all dry, he came back downstairs and began working on his homework, trying to pass the time before Sasha arrived.  
As it turned out, he wouldn't have to wait long, and she knocked on the door at just gone 11.

Forcing a smile, Kyle opened the door, and instantly his grin turned to a look of shock as she took in Sasha's appearance. Her hair hung limply to her shoulders, and the bags under her eyes contrasted with her pale skin. She obviously hadn't slept in days. And as the redhead stared at her bulging stomach, he realised that there was no wonder now.

'_She's __**pregnant**__?' _He thought to himself, trying not to stare at the bump.

"I… Uh…" Sasha leaned her head to one side, the corners of her mouth turning up into a smile.

"Hey, Kyle! It's great to see you again. So can I come in?" Not waiting for an answer, she stepped over the threshold and looked around, taking in her surroundings. "Man, your house is big! Is your bedroom huge too?" Kyle blinked, and cleared the back of his throat.

"Um, I guess, yeah. It's plenty big enough…" He trailed off, trying to keep his eyes from wondering back to her stomach. It wasn't that he judged her for it, just teenage pregnancy wasn't a hugely common experience in South Park, and he didn't know whether to comment or not. Should he congratulate her? Tell her she looks well? "Uh, do you want some coffee?" There was a pause, before Sasha started laughing. He stared at her, confusion dancing in his green eyes.

"That's it? That's all you say?" She shook her head at the boy, and turned, waddling into Kyle's living room with a hand on her back to support herself.

"Sorry," He mumbled. "I just wasn't expecting… Why did you want to see me?" She cocked her head at him again.

"Kyle, do you remember Bebe's party? She asked, lowering herself onto the couch, patting the seat beside her. Joining her, he threaded his hands through his hair.

"Not much of it," He admitted. "I remember us talking for hours, but the rest of the night is a little…"

"Hazy." She finished his sentence for him, and he nodded.

"Why?"

"We drank a lot that night, I know, but I felt so connected to you. But then in the morning I had to get back home and you were still passed out… I kinda regretted not saying goodbye or anything, but that's just the way it goes I guess." She shrugged absent-mindedly. "And then a few weeks later

"Sasha, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, ask away!"

"How long… Uh…" She laughed at him again, and he blushed slightly.

"How many weeks pregnant am I?" He nodded, relieved that she didn't mind him asking. "Well let's see… I guess I'm 32 weeks pregnant now. Only 8 more to go!" She said, smiling and patting her stomach.

"Do you know if it's a boy or a girl yet? Or did you want it to be a surprise?"

"I've never cared much for surprises," She grinned. "It's a boy." He smiled back. She sure did seem happy about the whole thing… Happier than he himself would be in her situation anyway.

"How come didn't you tell me you were pregnant when we were talking at Bebe's party?" He asked. Kyle would have thought that by the end of the evening he'd have proved to Sasha that he was understanding and non-judgemental enough for her to tell him this, but he guessed that it wasn't something you came out with that easily. She raised an eyebrow at the redhead.

"You really don't remember anything about that night?" He shook his head, looking confused.

"No… What does this have to do with me anyway? Isn't the father around?" Sighing, Sasha put her head in her hand and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Man, I was told that you're supposed to be the cleverest kid in school..." She sighed. "Yes, he's around- in fact, he's sitting right next to me. Kyle… You're the father."

* * *

**A/N: Oh, the drama! I apologise if you guys thought it was slow to get going… But I've worked on this chapter all week and I reeeeally hope at least some of you enjoyed it. I'd appreciate reviews so much! There's nothing quite like the first review is there? And I shall be updating with a new chapter every week. I've actually already started on Chapter Two :3**

**Thank you for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: My original plan was to put out new chapters every week but I'm too impatient to wait, so here it is. Three reviews :D Considering it's my first story on this account, I don't think that's so bad (: Thank you so much to those who have taken the time to review (and favourite/put on alert); it makes me unendingly happy :3 I hope everyone enjoys reading this chapter!**

* * *

He stared at the girl, mouth slightly agape from the shock. Surely she didn't mean…

"But I… We… We never…" Sasha sighed, resting her hands atop of her stomach. Of her baby. _His _baby.

"Yes, we did I'm afraid. We had sex. And now I'm pregnant with your child."

"Are… Are you sure it's mine?" Sasha's stance changed immediately. She pushed herself to her feet and planted hands on hips, glaring at him through her blue-grey eyes.

"Are you calling me a slut? Of course it's yours, I don't sleep around!" He immediately regretted having said anything, and shook his head hastily.

"No, no! I'm sorry, it's just… It's a shock, that's all. Shit. I mean, holy shit! My mom's gonna kill me" Sasha's expression softened a little, and she patted his arm.

"I know, I felt that way too when I first found out. And then I told mom, and she kicked me out… So I guess I understand. Although you're not the one who has to carry the little bastard around." She said, only half joking.

"What? Your mom kicked you out?" She nodded. "That sucks dude, I'm sorry. Where are you staying now?" She shrugged.

"It's not all bad. I was with my friends at first; going from place to place, until I started showing more obviously and I couldn't stay at school, so I moved in with my sister and her fiancé. Although I'm not sure she's too thrilled at the idea of me bringing a baby home…"

"I guess it's understandable… Why didn't you tell me before? I could have maybe been there for you…" She laughed, but it had an almost bitter edge to it.

"Kyle, my dad ran out on my mom just after I was born, and every stepfather I had after that was a complete jerk. I'm sorry, but I don't have the best opinion of guys right now. I mean, I totally thought that you were gonna take one look at me and push me back out of the door." At that, Kyle felt almost guilty. Yeah, it had come at a bit of a shock to the system, but when it came down to it, he was a good guy.

'_But then again,' _He thought to himself, '_I always thought I was a fairly smart and sensible guy too, but apparently I was wrong._' He ran a hand through his curls, knowing that this kid could ruin his life- and it hadn't even been born yet.

"When is it supposed to be born?" He asked, a little shakily.

"Well, _he _is supposed to arrive on the 18th of January."

"And what do you want from me?" She tensed up at his words, and Kyle hastily added, "I mean, how involved do you want me to be with… Him?"

"Um… Well, you're his dad. And whether you like it or not, in the next 18 years he's gonna need a father figure in his life. I don't want you running away like my dad did, so if you're gonna flake out on me I need to know now." Kyle said nothing at first. Every bone in his body wanted to run away, to tell her to leave and never come back. He felt sick to his stomach, and his heart was pounding with the shock. He wanted to pretend that this hadn't happened at all, but knew deep down that he couldn't. It was his mistake too, and he'd have to bear the consequences for the rest of his life. Sighing, he pulled Sasha into a hug- restricted a little by her baby bump.

"I won't flake out. I'll get a job. Help support i-… Him." She looked up at the father of her child, eyes glistening.

"Do you really mean that? Promise?"

"Sure, Sasha. Promise."

* * *

For the rest of the evening, Kyle was unusually quiet, the news from Sasha weighing heavily in his mind. He was terrified of everything there was to be terrified about; from telling his parents to having to take responsibility to finding a way to afford a new baby. He knew he had $1500 dollars in a saving bond from his parents and nearly $750 more in his own account, but would that be enough?  
He thought about everything they'd need to buy, about nursery schools and medical bills and all the other expenses.

How the hell was he supposed to afford a baby?

"Kyle?" He was brought back down to Earth by his mother's voice. Blinking, he looked round at his family- all three of whom were staring at him.

"Sorry, what was that?" He asked, attempting a smile. Sheila narrowed her eyes at her son.

"What's the matter son?" Gerald asked, his expression gentler and kinder than his wife's.

"Oh, nothing dad. I was just thinking about my midterms." He lied, smiling back at his father. Although he only ever really saw him during dinner because of his job, Kyle had a closer relationship to him than to his mother; mostly because he was willing to put a lot more faith in him. '_Maybe he shouldn't trust me…' _Kyle thought to himself, biting his lip.

"I'm sure you have nothing to worry about son. I mean, all you ever seem to do is study." His son smiled gratefully, appreciating the support.

"So Kyle, are you going to follow the Broflovski tradition and become a lawyer?" Sheila asked, spooning some more mashed potatoes onto his plate." The teenager hesitated for a moment, lost in thought. Would he even be able to do that now that he was going to be a father, or would he have to take the first job he could get to support his family?

"Uhm…" He mumbled. "Yeah, I guess that's one of my prospects…" He stared down at his food, and his parents exchanged looks. Sighing irritably, he pushed the plate away. "May I be excused? I'm not very hungry." Gerald nodded before Sheila could protest, and Kyle didn't waste any time in getting to his feet and making his way upstairs to his room. Sighing heavily, he closed the door behind him and slid down the wood to the floor, holding his head in his hands and sighing. What on earth had he gotten himself into?

He tried to think back to Bebe's party, to the events that had happened later into the night, but it still remained a mystery to him. Was it really his baby, or was she just saying that so she'd have someone to support the baby when It was born? He shook his head, as if trying to dispel those thoughts.  
_'Sasha already told me that it's definitely my baby, and she seems genuine enough.' _He reasoned with himself. Trying to consider things logically, he began pacing round and round his room, muttering to himself.

"First things first, I need to find out what Sasha already has for the baby," He pulled out his cell, and sent the girl in question a message to find out exactly that. "Okay, secondly… I'm gonna need a job." Fortunately, he'd recently been offered part-time work at Shakey's recently as part of the school's new 'early start' project. Kitchen work.  
At the time, he turned the offer down because of his schoolwork, but now it didn't seem to be such a bad idea… Remembering the business card that the greasy manager had pressed into his palm, Kyle fumbled around to look for it, knowing that if the job was still available then he may as well apply for it at least.  
After finally retrieving the piece of card from his desk draw, the redhead flipped open his cell once again, this time dialling the number.

"Hello, this is Shakey's Pizza. George talking."

"Hey, I'm calling about a job offer I received a few weeks ago, for work in the kitchen. Is the position still open?"

"Hold on a minute, let me check that for you." There was a pause, and Kyle heard the tapping of the keys on a keyboard, before the man replied. "Yes, it's still open. Did you want me to send you an application form?"

"Yeah, that'd be great." After giving George his name and address, the teenager hung up. '_Two things down, only about a million more to go.' _He thought to himself as he read the reply from Sasha.

'_I have a crib for him, and some clothes and a couple of baby bottles. It's all in my car at the moment. I still need to get a baby seat and a stroller for him though, and then after that it'll just be buying things as and when he needs it.' _Nodding to himself, Kyle sat at his desk and pulled out a notepad, rattling his brain for all the other things he'd need.

"A stroller…" He muttered to himself, scribbling away. "Diapers, bibs, car seat, a changing mat, baby lotion, a steriliser, a baby bath… Maybe one of those Moses baskets…" He paused. Was that everything they'd need at first? It seemed like a lot of crap for a tiny being… And he hadn't even _begun _to think about toys or books or anything else. Threading his fingers through his hair, he dropped his head onto the desk, groaning. His organisational mind was desperately trying to make sense of everything, but the teenager had no experience of this kind of thing. He wasn't even sure how he was supposed to react, let alone what to do with himself. Should he be happy? Angry? Scared?

* * *

The next day, Kyle worked up the nerve to call Sasha again, arranging to meet her at the local library. He'd always felt safe when he was holed up among the bookcases, mainly because no one ever thought to go in there at all.  
One thing he worried about was someone seeing that he, nerdy Kyle Broflovski, was with a heavily pregnant girl and jumping to conclusions- however correct those conclusions may be.  
After all, the last thing he needed right now was for his parents to find out through the grapevine that their beloved son had knocked up some random girl.

Sitting on one of the couches in the corner of the library, the redhead drummed his fingers nervously on his lap. Everywhere he looked was a constant reminder of the situation he was in; baby books, pregnancy books, baby name books, they all screamed out at him from atop their shelves.

"Kyle?" He looked up. Sasha was standing right in front of him, a baggy trench coat concealing the otherwise obvious bump protruding from her abdomen.

"Sasha, hi." He stood up awkwardly, not knowing quite what to do. Should he offer her his chair, or hug her? In the end, he did neither, as the girl settled herself down onto one of the chairs.

"Gotta be honest, I was kind of surprised that you wanted to see me again so soon. Thought it'd take at least a week for you to get your head around things." He shrugged.

"Guess I'm a fast adapter. Anyway, I kinda just wanted to talk a few things over with you… If that's alright, I mean." This time it was Sasha who shrugged.

"Sure, go ahead. Did you wanna know what names I was thinking about?" Kyle blinked. If he was perfectly honest, he hadn't even considered baby names yet- that always seemed like something a person would do if they were perfectly content with having a baby, not teenagers whose drunken one-night-stand had left them in trouble.

"Oh. Um, yeah, why not?" She smiled brightly.

"I like Skylar." Kyle's wrinkled nose told her exactly what he thought about that name, and she laughed breezily. "No? Okay, maybe not. I haven't really thought of many, I guess we'll just wait and see when he gets here." He nodded, smiling softly.

"Alright then. I actually wanted to ask… Where are you and the baby going to live once he's born?"

"I'm glad you've started referring to him as a 'he' now, rather than an 'it'." She joked, patting her stomach. "Well as I said, my sister lives in North Park, but they haven't got all that much space as it is and I think she probably wants me out of her hair anyway… So I might try and move down here. At least then our son can spend time with both of us. I think he needs some stability in his life, don't you agree?"

"Yeah, course. I'll help you look for a place, but how will you pay for it?" The girl shrugged, a smile playing on her lips.

"I actually have some inheritance money from my grandmother after she died. I took it all out of my account after mom kicked me out; I think there's enough to last a while. Until I find a job at least."

"That reminds me…" Kyle pulled out an envelope from his jacket pocket, containing some of the money that he'd been saving and handing it to her. "You said you needed a stroller for him." She cocked her head to the side, eyes widening slightly.

"You're giving this to me?"

"Yeah, for the stroller. I've applied for a job too, down at the Shakey's in town, but at the moment this is all I can give you without my parents becoming suspicious." For a moment, Kyle could have sworn that Sasha teared up a little, and both parties looked away in embarrassment as a slightly awkward silence ensued.

"Th-thanks, Kyle." She sniffed. "Still haven't told your folks yet then?" He shook his head.

"Nah, I need to figure some things out first. And put my affairs in order." She looked at him confusedly.

"Affairs…?" Kyle grinned at her, the first truly genuine smile he'd produced all day.

"Yeah, because it's safe to say that mom will kill me when she finds out!"

* * *

The next day was Monday, and while most teenagers at South Park High School were dreading the resuming of lessons, Kyle actually looked forward to the chance of a distraction from everything that was going on recently. Being able to get on with his schoolwork gave him the chance to feel like a normal teenager again, despite the fact that he was about to be a father.  
As it approached the end of third period, Kyle found his mind wandering past parametric differentiations and instead thinking about how he could find a place for Sasha. He imagined that it was unlikely that they'd be able to find a house straight away considering their budget, but some of the apartment blocks around town would be a good enough environment to raise a child in…  
The bell rang, signalling the start of lunch. Collecting his books, the teenager left the classroom to find his three friends. Usually he would head down to the library for the first half of recess, but he just didn't feel like it today.  
Finding them outside and sitting on a bench, he made his way to their table. Stan and Kenny both smiled warmly at the approaching redhead, but Cartman just continued shovelling fries into his mouth.

"Hey Kyle!" Stan greeted, patting the space next to him.

"Hey guys." He returned, sitting beside his best buddy and sighing. The black haired boy turned to look at him, immediately sensing that something was wrong.

"What's up, Kyle?"

"Oh, nothing… Just stuff…" Stan furrowed his brow. It wasn't like him to be so quiet…

"Hey Jew, guess what we're doing in History this week?" His addressee didn't even reply, just staring off into space. "Concentration camps!" Cartman continued. "Hey, what's the difference between a tonne of coal and a thousand Jews? Jews burn longer!" No retort came from his opponent, so he just shrugged and went back to his food. Stan tugged gently on Kyle's arm, leading him away from the other two.

"Dude, are you okay? Usually you'd have kicked his ass for that." Kyle shrugged, sighing once again.

"I've… Kinda gotten into some trouble, Stan." He confessed, playing with a loose thread on his sleeve.

"What kind of trouble?" His friend's toned was laced with concern. "Is it money? Drugs?" Kyle blinked at him in surprise.

"Dude, no, why would you think that?" Stan shrugged.

"Sorry, just making sure."

"No, it's just… Remember Bebe's party? And the girl I was talking to all night?" Like Kyle, Stan had to think for a minute before answering. "The one where we all drank way too much? Yeah, I think so."

"Well… The girl, Sasha… She's pregnant. And she says it's mine." His friend's jaw dropped, and he pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Wait. So you're telling me that you guys had sex at the party? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I honestly didn't remember Stan, otherwise I would have. Anyway, I'm kinda fucked. The baby's due in like eight weeks; how the hell am I supposed to tell my parents?" Stan grasped him by the shoulders, shaking him gently.

"Dude, calm down. If I were you, I'd be careful about telling your parents. I mean, are you even certain that it's yours?" He asked.

"I don't know… I mean, she got really defensive when I asked her if she was sure, and the dates seem to add up. It was a couple of months before I turned sixteen…" He trailed off. Stan let go and pinched his nose again.

"Aw, man. That sucks dude." Kyle shrugged again.

"I know, I've been trying to get my head around it. There's so much to think about… I mean, we have to buy him a stroller, and Sasha needs an apartment to live in before the kid's born…" Stan thought for a minute.

"I think I might know a place. It's only one bedroom I think, but for the rent isn't too much and it's not in a bad area or anything." Kyle smiled gratefully.

"Do you think you could get me the details of the landlord? I managed to get a job at Shakey's, so hopefully it'll be in my budget."

"Sure… But how are you gonna explain it to your parents?" He paused for a moment, not too sure of the answer himself yet.

"I don't know, I figured I'll talk to dad first. But mom is definitely gonna kill me."

"Of course she will, it's Sheila!" Stan joked, shoving him playfully. "But don't worry dude. I'm sure things will turn out okay. Man, it's one hell of a shock though. I can't believe you've done someone!" Kyle combed his hair with his hands.

"Dude, me neither." Their conversation was interrupted as a French Fry came sailing through the air, hitting Kyle on the cheek.

"Ay!" Cartman called over. "Are you fags done yet?"

* * *

**A/N: I kinda struggled with this chapter, and I'm worried that it seems unrealistic ): Honestly, I have no idea how someone would react to finding out that they're gonna be a father (or a mother, for that matter), so I'm sorry if you don't think it's accurate.  
I'm still gonna try and publish the chapters weekly (maybe twice a week depending) and not get impatient of waiting a week to do the next one, because I think it's better to stagger them.**

**I'm trying to write as many chapters as I can now because I may possibly be working for a few weeks this Summer- hauling catalogues around. Yaaaaaay.  
So yeah, I hope you guys liked chapter 2, and that you'll make my day by leaving me a review [: Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hey guys, thanks to all of you who have reviewed (even if half of them were from my girlfriend). I hope you enjoy chapter three!**

* * *

The Saturday after his conversation with Stan, Kyle finally approached his father. As usual, he had shut himself in his study, typing the notes from a case up. He knocked on the door softly, and Gerald looked up to see what it was.

"Dad? Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure son. Come on in." He spun round in his office chair to look at Kyle, who had settled into one of his father's armchairs.

"Well… I have a problem. And I don't think you and mom will be at all pleased about it, but I need to say it, get it out of the way…" Gerald wrinkled his forehead.

"It's not a drugs problem is it?"

"God, no! Why does everyone think that?" he shook his head. "No, it's not that. Well… A few months back, I went to a party, and I met this girl." The redhead ran a hand through his locks. "There was alcohol at the party dad, and everyone drank too much…" He trailed off.

"Kyle!" His father looked a little shocked. "You're only sixteen, it's illegal for you to be drinking!" His son gulped. If he reacted that badly to the drinking, God knows what he was gonna think about the baby.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry. Anyway, the girl, Sasha, she came over last Saturday, said she had something to tell me…" Gerald groaned and put his head in his hands as it finally clicked in his mind.

"Oh son, please don't tell me that this girl is pregnant." Saying nothing, the teenager looked at the floor, blushing slightly. "Kyle!" His dad shouted. "Do you have any idea what this means? You can't have a baby, you're too young!" He got to his feet and started pacing round the room like a caged lion, reminding Kyle of the night that he'd found out about the baby.

"I'm sorry, dad." He whispered. "I never meant for this to happen." Gerald whipped round to look at him.

"I sure hope that you didn't! Do you even know how much work a baby will be? What about your schoolwork?"

"I don't know, dad, I'm sorry. I got a job at Shakey's, I start next week… I know it'll take a lot, but I'm gonna try really hard to balance everything. I'm sorry dad, I'm sorry." He said pathetically, still staring at the floor. Gerald's expression softened and he sat beside his son.

"Well, it's a start I guess. Do you know when the baby's due?"

"Yeah… About seven weeks from now." His father's eyes widened.

"Seven…? That doesn't give you much time to prepare! Who even is this girl? You've never mentioned her before."

"No, I hadn't met her before the party. She lives in North Park with her sister, but she's moving down here before the baby arrives. I've been looking for a place for her."

"Alright son…" Gerald sighed. "I take it you haven't told your mother yet, or the whole street would know." Kyle shook his head, managing a small smile.

"Not yet… I think I need time to think of the right words to say."

"Don't leave it too long, Kyle. I think I need some time to get my head around this; maybe we can discuss it again later." The teenager got to his feet, taking this as his queue to leave.

"Okay, pa. Thanks." Sighing, Kyle shut the door behind him, resting his head against it. He was glad to have gotten that over with, but knew that his mother's reaction would be ten times worse- definitely not something to look forward to.

He checked his watch. 11:57. He had just about enough time to get ready to meet Sasha and Stan at the park in 30 minutes; so he used the time to splash his face with cold water and pull on a nicer t-shirt.  
Although he couldn't explain why, Kyle felt nervous about the meeting. He desperately wanted the mother of his unborn child and his best friend to get along, especially as they'd be seeing a lot more of each other in the coming months.

* * *

Luckily for him, he was the first to arrive, and so picked a bench overlooking pretty much the whole green to sit on. A children's soccer match was taking place on the field in front of him, and he watched as the kids ran around kicking the ball to one another, fuelled on by the encouragement of their parents.  
He paused for a moment. Would that be him one day, shouting from the side-lines?

"Kids are great, aren't they?" Kyle jumped as he was brought back to reality. He had been so entrapped within his thoughts that he hadn't noticed Sasha's arrival, and the girl smiled at him as she lowered herself onto the bench. "I take it your friend isn't here yet then?" The redhead checked his watch again. 12:38. Stan was 8 minutes late.

"Urm, no… Maybe he got held up or something." He said quickly, not wanting Sasha's opinion of Stan to be lowered before she'd even met him. She laughed breezily.

"No, it's okay. I'm actually kinda glad that I'm not the last one to arrive." Kyle smiled back, slightly relieved.

"I'm sure he'll be here soon." She nodded.

"Oh hey, I got your message saying that you got the job you applied for. Congratulations, I knew you would!" He shrugged, blushing a little.

"Thanks. It isn't much of an income, but it should help keep you afloat. Did you manage to get hold of a stroller?" She nodded, smiling gratefully at him.

"Yeah, I found a great one that coverts to a car seat as well. Actually, I have the rest of the money right here if you wanted to take it back." She held it out to him.

"No, no, you keep it." He insisted, pushing the envelope back at her. "Put it towards diapers or something."

"Hey you two." They looked up to see Stan, smiling sheepishly at them. "Sorry I'm late, football practise ran a little late and coach wanted to talk to me afterwards." His eyes flitted from Sasha's face to her stomach, and his smile faltered a little. "You must be Sasha. Great to meet you." The girl grinned at him.

"You too, Stan. I'd stand up, but…" She motioned to her stomach. "It's a little hard to do that right now." The black haired teenager sat beside his friend, leaning over to talk to Sasha.

"Nah, I'm not worth standing up for anyway!" He joked. Kyle smiled to himself. They'd only known each other a couple of minutes and already they appeared to be getting along well- definitely a relief to him.

"Stan's the one who's been helping me look for an apartment for you." He interjected, motioning towards the boy.

"Oh, hey," Stan started to search through his pockets. "That reminds me." Withdrawing a flyer, he handed it to the redhead. "I found an apartment block that should be within your budget. It's open house all this weekend, so I figured maybe you guys would wanna go check it out. I could leave you to it if you want." Taking the flyer from Kyle, Sasha skimmed through the writing, her mouth splitting into a wide grin.

"This is great! Thank you so much!" She reached across Kyle to hug Stan, who returned it if somewhat awkwardly. "Although I think we'd both like it if you came with us, wouldn't we Kyle?" He nodded, turning to his best friend.

"Yeah, we'd like that. Maybe you could drive us there?"

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, they pulled up in front of the apartment block. It was a fairly new building, and a sign out front advertised the one-to-three bedroom apartments that came furnished with most essential items. A few people appeared to be wondering around, and Kyle opened the door for Sasha and helped her out.

"Well the building looks nice enough. And it's not too far away from the shops in town and school." Stan commented, locking his car and turning towards the other two.

"Yeah, and there's a store right on the corner of the block." Kyle nodded, as the three of them made their way towards the block. As they entered the sliding doors, a well-dressed man smiled brightly at them as he stopped them in their path.

"Good afternoon, you three. Have you come for the open house?" Nodding, each of the teenagers shook his hand in turn.

"Yeah, we wanted to look around the one and two bed apartments." Kyle told him. Space had been something that himself and Sasha had discussed when they'd met up in the library a week ago, and both had agreed that preferably they would like two bedrooms, but if push came to shove then one would be plenty.

"Certainly, sir. Come this way." They followed the man patiently as he showed them from apartment to apartment, listing all their many features as he went. All of them contained a double bed, a refrigerator, a stove, a microwave, a couch and a small TV –"not bad for a first home", the letting agent stated.

An hour later, the three of them remerged from the building, having taken the documents required to rent one of the apartments.

"I'm not sure," Kyle sighed, running a hand through his hair. "They're all good enough, but I think the two bedroomed ones might be a little out of our budget." Sasha nodded in agreement.

"I thought that too. But I think for now, a one bedroomed place wouldn't be so bad. I mean, the baby won't need his own room until he grew out of his crib, and that won't be for about three years anyway…"

"I guess we'll just keep saving up until we can afford it." A silence ensued as the teenagers thought to themselves, until Stan broke the silence.

"Want me to drive you guys home?"

* * *

After dropping Sasha off at her motel, the Stan drove Kyle back to his own house, quietly humming along to the radio.

"I can't believe how real this is getting," The redhead murmured, staring out the window at the blur of houses and stores. "I'm too young to be a father." Stan chuckled softly.

"Apparently not, dude. But hey, at least you're sorting things out now. Have you told your parents yet?"

"I told my dad just before I came to meet you guys, but I still haven't figured out how to tell mom."

"How did he take it?" Kyle sighed. He hated disappointing his parents, and knew that this would probably be the biggest disappointment that he'd ever give them.

"Okay I guess. A lot better than he could have done, but I think he's just as worried about telling my mom as I am."

"I'm not surprised Ky, your mom's a total-"

"Dude!" He cut the darker haired teenager off. "You sound like Cartman!"

* * *

The moment he set foot through the door, Kyle could tell that something was wrong. His mother stood in front of the stairs, glaring at him with arms folded across her chest. Behind her, his father looked away, smiling sheepishly. His stomach lurches as he realised that his dad, whom he had confided in, had betrayed him to his mother, who had grabbed him by the arm and was now shaking him ferociously.

"How could you be so _stupid_?" She yelled, her expression livid. "Have we not raised you to be more responsible?" He tried to think of the words to say but they seemed to dissolve on his tongue before he could speak them. Heart thudding in his chest, he stepped backwards, staring at his mother in horror.

"Ma, you weren't supposed to find out like this." He hastily tried to explain.

"Then _how _was I supposed to find out Kyle?" Was I supposed to discover from somebody else that my son has knocked up this… This… _Common whore_?" Her words cut through the air like a knife through butter, and the redhead flinched as though they had physically hurt him.

"Sasha isn't a whore mom, she's a good person!" He yelled back. "It was a mistake, alright? Would you prefer it if she'd had an abortion or something?" Sheila stood to her full height, letting her breath hiss out through her teeth.

"I would have preferred it if she wasn't pregnant at all, Kyle." Her son's expression darkened, and his face glowed crimson in anger.

"Well it's happened, so you'll have to just deal with it." His mother's colouring immediately reddened to match Kyle's.

"How _dare _you speak to me like that. Get out." She glowered, pushing him in the chest. The teenager's heart dropped into his stomach, as Gerald finally got involved in the conversation.

"Now wait just a minute Sheila, don't you think that's a bit much? Maybe we should all just let ourselves call down and-"

"No. Get out, Kyle. _Now._"

* * *

**A/N: A fairly crappy ending/chapter, but I was trying to get this one done :c I'm sowwy guys. I promise things will start to get more interesting next time.  
To carnival and Coyote Smith, thank you for reviewing both of my previous chapters! It means a lot to me, really does.  
I'll try to get the next chapter up on time next week!**

**As always, thanks for reading (and reviewing!).**


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